LONDON – RwandAir has today taken delivery of its first dedicated cargo aircraft as the carrier expands its fleet.
The Boeing 737-800 SF, which is painted in RwandAir’s first cargo livery, will be based at the carrier’s Kigali hub. The new jet will allow the Rwandan carrier to further expand its cargo operation, which has been on the rise.
RwandAir will operate the new freighter to a number of key destinations in Africa and the Middle East, including Johannesburg, Nairobi, and UAE.
Yvonne Makolo, CEO of RwandAir said: “The delivery of our dedicated cargo aircraft is a huge milestone in RwandAir’s fleet expansion plans. Cargo is of ever-increasing importance for the aviation industry, and as a landlocked country, we recognize the importance and value of good cargo connections.”
“We want to ensure that Africa is seamlessly connected to the world, driving economic growth and valuable trade deals.”
Operation on Dubai and African routes
In a recent interview with Rwandan news source The New Times, Bosco Gakwaya, RwandAir’s senior manager of cargo services, advised that the freighter aircraft will commence operations with Dubai and a few intra-African routes.
The freighter will serve to strengthen the trade connections between Rwanda and the United Arab Emirates and act as an “import-export” link.
Rwanda’s main export markets are the UAE and Europe. It is hoped that the operation of the new freighter will assist in reducing shipping and freight costs.
Speaking to The New Times, Gakwaya said: “The aircraft has a capacity of 23 tonnes, suffice to say that, for our initial destinations, we are good to go in terms of the capacity, looking at today’s demand.”
About Rwandair
RwandAir Limited is the flag carrier airline of Rwanda. It operates domestic and international services to East Africa, Central Africa, West Africa, Southern Africa, Europe, the Middle East and Asia, from its main base at Kigali International Airport in Kigali.
RwandAir is renowned for its excellent customer service – recently RwandAir won the award for ‘Best Airline Staff in Africa’ at Skytrax’s 2022 World Airline Awards, for a second successive year.
The airline currently operates to a variety of destinations across East, Central, West, and Southern Africa, the Middle East, Europe, and Asia.
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